We had a lively discussion in The Listening Room last week, so lively it has brought BC Magazine a new writer and a new series. The discussion I refer to is whether or not we, the listeners of this room, should be trying to champion more obscure music with our selections. My answer to that is yes and no.
There may be some of our participants who are using this forum as a crusade to spread the word about a favorite album or artist and they will not rest until we have all gotten on board. Some of us are using this as a vehicle to talk about music we love, damn the torpedoes. Some of us might be doing both at the same time. Some of us might take one approach one week, the other the next. Some of us simply aren't thinking about this that much and aren't taking ourselves so seriously. That is the beauty of panel discussions. We are all bringing our own vibe to the discussion. Speaking of discussions, thanks to everybody who has stopped in and commented in these first installments.
These may not be the best songs ever, they may not even be our favorites, but they kept us entertained last week. You could do worse than to try a few of them out and see what they do for you.
DJRadiohead "The Fear" from This is Hardcore by Pulp
This is "Our Music From a Bachelor's Den"
The sound of loneliness turned up to 10
A horror soundtrack from a stagnant water bed, and it sounds just like this:
This is the sound of someone losing the plot
Making out that they're OK when they're not
You're gonna like it, but not a lot"
The powers that be will be thrilled to see my big lyric blockquote, but I felt I had to do it. That's almost as great an opening to an album as "Please allow me to introduce myself, I'm a man of wealth and taste." This, boys and girls, is how you make an entrance. That opening salvo is paired with a brilliant use of overblown, overwrought, goth-flavored horror music. The keyboards sound like the ones you remember hearing when Scooby-Doo went into the haunted houses, the backing vocals shriek and wail, and guitars are made to sound like harpsichords.
I was very late to the Pulp party. In fact, I didn't buy my first Pulp CD until after Jarvis Cocker had pulled the plug on them. I am now playing catchup, importing these wonderfully-remastered deluxe editions of their best albums. I have Jarvis' solo record and Pulp's Different Class on the way. I have a feeling you will be hearing about them again next week.
Article comments
1 - DJRadiohead
Sir Saleski, I have stayed away from Lily Allen for reasons I can't quite remember or explain. I am going to have to investigate this further.
2 - Tom Johnson
Ah, dangit, I ran out of time this weekend and forgot to contribute for this week. Next week, for sure.
3 - DJRadiohead
Tom, I'll be looking forward to hearing from you next week.
In the meantime, have you spent anytime investigating Pulp yet?
4 - Tom Johnson
Not yet - Pulp's on my ever-expanding mental list titled "to check out," the rank of which shifts from week to week. I'm going to have to bite the wax tadpole here soon and just order one of those deluxe editions. How about you - any progress on GBV?
5 - zingzing
hey djr, i would suggest pulp's "we love life" (i think that's what it is called...)
it's kind of the ugly stepchild of pulp's later stuff, career killer kinda thang... produced by scott walker as well.
6 - DJRadiohead
Zing, I'm listening to We Love Life as we speak. I was able to score it locally (for an outrageous sum of money that I shouldn't have paid) and I think it's quite a good listen.
"Weeds" and "I Love Life" are both great. "The Trees" is also pretty great. I don't think there's a song on it I don't like.
7 - Jon Sobel
I just discovered Jonathan Coulton recently. Very hard to get "Chiron Beta Prime" or "Code Monkey" out of your head once they're in there. Yikes!
8 - Mat Brewster
Sorry I missed out this week. Went out of town then got hit with a nasty stomach thing, that is just now letting me crawl away from the bed.
9 - DJRadiohead
No worries, Sir Brewster. I hope your digestive track returns to a more pleasant state.
10 - Connie Phillips
Congrats! A link to this article now appears on our Myspace Profile Page.
11 - DJRadiohead
My copy of Jarvis and Different Class arrived this week. I'm not sure which album will be represented next week but I can virtually guarantee one of them will.